A Paradise Built in Hell

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A startling investigation of what people do in disasters and why it matters Why is it that in the aftermath of a disaster? whether manmade or natural?people suddenly become altruistic, resourceful, and brave? What makes the newfound communities and purpose many find in the ruins and crises after disaster so joyous? And what does this joy reveal about ordinarily unmet social desires and possibilities? In A Paradise Built in Hell, award-winning author Rebecca Solnit explores these phenomena, looking at major calamities from the 1906 earthquake in San Francisco through the 1917 explosion that tore up Halifax, Nova Scotia, the 1985 Mexico City earthquake, 9/11, and Hurricane Katrina in New Orleans. She examines how disaster throws people into a temporary utopia of changed states of mind and social possibilities, as well as looking at the cost of the widespread myths and rarer real cases of social deterioration during crisis. This is a timely and important book from an acclaimed author whose work consistently locates unseen patterns and meanings in broad cultural histories.An endless fiesta would be exhausting and demoralizing: the pleasure would go
out of it, the masks would disguise only fatigue and apathy, and there ... compete
for their tight-fitting, face-covering headpieces with letters, emblems, or colors that
reflect the superhero names of the wrestlers. ... When politicians cut ribbons or
staged other public events they hoped would reflect The City Belongs to
Everyone.

Title

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A Paradise Built in Hell

Author

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Rebecca Solnit

Publisher

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Penguin - 2010-08-31

ISBN-13

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